Chapter 60: Chapter 98-99 – Memory That Does Not Exist II
I walked carrying a child who was soaked and shivering in the rain.
Unlike now, I set foot in [My Eyes], which is still quite simple.
Sitting at the small guild home counter, Ian, who was still in his black-haired days, sighed.
『Who is she?』
『I came and picked her up.』
『I didn't pick her up from somewhere, but it was a cheap dog that I borrowed from somewhere that I picked up while coming. Didn't she get kidnapped from somewhere? No matter what, she can't be used as a shield.』
『Are you crazy? She will wash up and come out, so please lend me some shampoo and clothes. Looking at it, I thought my clothes would be too big, so I couldn't do it.』
『Ha, what are you washing? It's a girl. Wait, I'll call mom.』
『Why call her?』
『Then, girl, will you wash it? Is that such a big kid?』
『"What. I'm still a kid.』
『Even if you think like that, she would be scared. We'll take care of her, so just be quiet.』
Ian, who still looks young in her youth, left and came back.
She brought down [Baek], her mother, and the demonic spirit.
『"Oh my goodness. What is this?』
『"Mom. Look at this guy. He brought another girl again?』
『"Oh… How do I do this? She was hurt too much. How could a child end up looking like this?.』
She was a narrow-eyed beauty who looked good with her voluminous bun hair.
She was a married woman wearing a so-called Dongtan Missy look and a windbreaker, with a body that is incomparable to that of her own daughter.
She was a woman overflowing with maternal love.
『It's hard for me to be alone as my child grows up. If you're not busy, let's wash together.』
『"Wait for a moment. Mom will bring the medicine. Please move me to the bathroom.』
『I understand.』
This is a memory of when Ceres first entered the guild.
"It's the same as I remember. The only difference is that Chang moved me."
"Did Ian welcome you back then?"
"Yes."
If one looks closely, one can see Seong Yeon in the corner of the guild home.
She hasn't said anything so far and is quietly looking at the child I brought in.
『Where did you pick her up?』
『In the alley over there.』
『Do you like blonde hair like this? Or because she's younger?』
『Are you crazy? I brought her here because the kid was hurt.』
『Even if you like a person too much, it's okay.』
Even though she was the same age as me, she was enjoying a drink in the corner of the guild home.
She took a sip of a cheap beer from the market and showed that she had no interest in a guy like that.
"That's Seong Yeon…"
"It's a really sharp atmosphere."
"That's right. This may be the first time I've seen her so irritated."
Her eye area was also dark and looked tired.
It is clear that something happened here in the previous episode.
"What happened next?"
"After washing up... taking a nap... When I wake up, Seong Yeon, who brought me in with her arms, will have greeted me."
But this memory will be different.
Ceres also seemed to sense the foreshadowing and looked at the next scene with a nervous expression.
『What is your name?』
『Ceres…』
『Are you feeling okay?』
『"It hurts…』
『I put the potion on it, so you'll be fine soon.』
『"Hand… Scary…』
『Yes??』
I was with Ceres in the room I was staying in at the guild home.
It's still a small guild, so there probably wasn't a room to allocate to the child.
In the other episode, after hearing about Ceres' past history, I could tell that, as a man, I was being careful not to make contact.
"It was like that at first. It was a nuisance for us to stay in the same room. We didn't let her touch her body."
"It probably wasn't me, but Seong Yeon."
"Yes."
The scene changed again.
This time, it was when Ceres opened her heart to some extent.
『Now, give me your hand.』
『…』
『Is this okay now?』
『… Yes.』
『Hands today. Bridge tomorrow. Let's increase it one by one like this. It may be hard, but it's all for you.』
『"All right…』
It was rehabilitation treatment.
I, a man, am I touching Ceres?
It looks like she's still scared, but even though she's trembling, she holds on and feels the warmth of the person.
"…"
"… Why?"
"This is what Seong Yeon did for me."
I became anxious.
Ceres was trying to notice.
Also, the scene changed, and the scenery accelerated according to the flow.
『Oh, it's pretty good. Yes, raise your fist! One two! One two!』
『Whoa~! Whoo, whoo, whoo!!』
『Don't hang up. Keep squeezing until the feeling of squeezing goes numb. Use it in your daily life to the point where it becomes a given!』
『I understand!』
This time it's Auror training.
It is also a required course to become a professional hunter.
I confronted Ceres in a large room that clearly looked like a rented gym.
If you think about it, Ceres and I both had bare hands.
Looking at Brigitta's reaction, it seems like bare-handed hunters are rare.
…
Probably not.
『Today ends here! Good job~!』
『Thank you.』
『Wow, by the way, you've really grown up a lot. Now, if you let your guard down, you'll be in trouble.』
『It's because I like teaching. Thank you for making it easy to understand.』
『Hehe. You can reach S rank in no time. I heard you received the skill last time?』
『Yes. I never thought it would appear while I was helping with cleaning.』
We were flirting.
Ceres has suddenly become as big as me.
I had a drink while watching other hunters training, and then I reached out my hand.
『You touch my cheek today~!』
『Right… Are you okay? Now, even if you don't train like this, you won't run amok.』
『And then you start yelling at the new guild member.』
『Because that guy looked straight into my tits. It was blatant.』
『No. Still, the punching was severe. Let's train until the rejection response becomes a little more faint.』
『Ugh…』
In the previous episode, I enjoyed holding the soft-looking cheeks with both hands and rubbing and stretching them.
It was like stroking a dog with soft cheeks.
Ceres over there still looked happy, but over here she was sweating.
"I don't know... Uh..."
Ceres was perplexed.
"What Seong Yeon did for me... Why is it that she is replaced by a Chang?"
Ceres have doubts.
"It's my precious memory... But why…"
Ceres dropped it.
『Oh. This is a good outfit. Since we've already come this far, let's wear something fluttery.』
『I don't want to die. If you wear something like that, you're sure to get attacked that day.』
『What do you think of men?』
『A one-eyed beast with a brain in its crotch.』
『It's not completely wrong, but you can't just wear the equipment forever, right?』
『But even so, I hate clothes with open chests like that. I prefer this way.』
『Are those men's clothes?』
『Yes. I'm going to dress up as a man.』
『I'm going back.』
『…』
『… Why?』
『You don't want to put it on?』
『You say you want to, but why am I forcing you? I don't like it.』
『Apart from that, do you want to see me wearing that?』
『I want to see you, but... 』
『Then let's buy two sets of this and that. Women's clothes are worn inside, and men's clothes are outside. How do you feel?』
『Oh. Let's do that.』
The scene paused here for a moment.
Because Ceres shook her head.
"… No."
"What?"
"Seong Yeon… You said you don't need women's clothes."
So it's not my memory.
It's someone else's memory.
I denied this memory and then moved on to the next scene.
Something dangerous has come.
『Where am I?』
『You'll know it when you see it.』
It was a tomb.
In our memories, we were standing in front of countless tombstones.
"This memory…"
Ceres standing next to me also doesn't know this scenery.
It's a strange situation where neither of us know each other even though they are appearing.
『National cemetery for hunters managed by the country. Hunters who attack the tower are treated as patriots.』
『So?』
『There are often people who die in the tower but whose identity is impossible to identify. A body like that is buried here. It was not provided by the government, but our hunters bought the land through the association and cultivated it, so it is a place that was opened, but the mere existence of a place like this is somewhat of a comfort to the bereaved families.』
『…』
『It took a while.』
『What is it?』
『You lost your parents in the tower. Well, I secretly looked into it because I thought the body might have ended up here.』
『You finally found it?』
『It took a while.』
『A little bit?』
『About a month? You didn't know when the two of you passed away. So I jumped on my feet. I searched around the area where my parents were attacked and asked if anyone knew about this incident. Find out in detail when he passed away. At that time, we contacted the guild that recovered the body. At that point, the fact that they were of different races helped, so I was able to somehow identify them.』
I stretched out my hand and swept the grave.
In my memory, I handed something to Ceres.
It is a keepsake.
『This…』
『───』
『───』
『───』
『───』
The two people were saying something, but their conversation was not heard until the end of that scene.
From here, their own memories.
A precious thing that cannot be shown to anyone.
This was not something that someone like a stranger, who has a different turn and a different path, should interfere with.
"Are you here with Seong Yeon too?"
"No."
Ceres trembled.
"I tried to persuade her to go here instead. I didn't know why it was suddenly a tomb, so I declined."
It was clearly meant to show the way.
"I thought it was an unimportant place because they didn't recommend it twice."
I was confused.
She clung to me, struggling in a situation she seemed to know but did not know.
"Does oppa know this memory?"
"It's my first time seeing this too."
"Then why is my oppa coming out?"
"I don't know, but I know why. That's why I don't want to talk about it."
"Why?"
"The Seong Yeon that you remember here and the person you like even though she hasn't appeared yet. They are both precious people to you."
"That's right."
"I don't want to instill distrust between you and those people. I want to let you live as you are now without knowing anything at all."
"…"
Ceres took a step back.
She rolled her eyes back and forth and tried to find out her true intentions.
"Fuck."
A harsh curse came out of Ceres' mouth.
It was a rough voice I heard for the first time.
"This isn't my oppa's memory. But it's not my memory either. Then it belongs to the person who was supposed to be here in the first place."
While she was repeating her doubts, the scene changed again.
I wondered if there was still something to show, but this time the world was surrounded by a landscape I knew.
… Love hotel.
『Can I call you Oppa?』
『Are you trying to be foolish at that age?』
『Yes. At least I want to do that in front of you.』
『Well, you had a hard time too. It must have been very difficult.』
『… Oppa.』
『Are you okay? You can do that anytime in front of me.』
『Thank you. Really.』
I remember seeing this on the 10th floor.
The memory shown by the Knight of Pure Love as a reward for clearing the gateway and when he informed her that Seong Yeon was a returner.
And… After this scene...
"Oh shit! Was this the episode that was shown just now!?"
"Oppa?"
"Just sleep, close your eyes!"
"Why!? Because this memory is the key? I said if this is my memory, I have the right to see it too."
"That's not it!"
That's coming.
A curse that Seong Yeon and I are endlessly afraid of.
Memories that we never want to see again, even if we die, came upon us